Back in 2011, Nissan decided to stuff the powertrain from its mighty GT-R into theJuke mini-crossover(which we called “the perfect ride for a speed freak with a sense of humor”), creating a monster known as the Juke-R. Now, this chimeric crossover is getting an upgrade.
The Nissan Juke-R 2.0 debuts this week at the 2015 Goodwood Festival of Speed in the U.K. Originallyteased as the Juke-R NISMO(the last part of the name is short for “Nissan Motorsports”), it’s even more insane than version 1.0
Nissan’s latest monster Juke still features the 3.8-liter, twin-turbocharged GT-R, but it’s been upgraded from the previous production version’s 545 horsepower to 600 hp. That’s the same output as theGT-R NISMO, the most extreme version of the GT-R available to customers.
Nissan didn’t say specifically, but seems logical for the Juke-R 2.0 to pack the GT-R NISMO’s 481 pound-feet of torque as well. An all-wheel drive system derived from the one used in the GT-R helps put that power to the ground.
In addition to giving the Juke-R 2.0 an extra shot of horsepower, Nissan made some visual upgrades as well. The new version is based on the facelifted Juke thatdebuted for the 2015 model year— although it takes an eagle eye to spot the differences between the two.
More noticeable changes include a new front bumper with larger cooling apertures, a carbon-fiber rear bumper with integrated diffuser, carbon-fiber fender flares, and newer-style GT-R wheels.
Those steroidal add-ons, combined with the stealthy matte-black paint, almost make the Juke-R 2.0 look sinister. Until you remember that this is still a Juke, and see its goofy face.
The dissonance between the serious performance implied by the GT-R hardware and the laughs brought on by the Juke bodywork helped make the previous Juke-R a fan favorite. The same will probably be true of the new model.
Besides the two original concept versions, Nissan actually built a handful of production Juke-Rs for people to buy. The carmaker won’t discuss plans to sell the Juke-R 2.0 right now, but you can bet that if it does go on sale, it will cost as much as the supercars it seeks to imitate.
